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To ace Canadian history, stroll old Toronto

'Muddy York' was site of a battle in War of 1812

Soldiers re-enact a skirmish at Old Fort York in Toronto. The national historic site that is marking the bicentennial of the bloody Battle of York this year, is now surrounded by a freeway and a high-end condo district.

If there's one word that describes Toronto's traffic - as well Toronto's politics - it has to be "gridlock." Like a sign on the city's streetcars says: Getting. Around. Town. Can. Take. An. Eternity.

For commuters and visitors alike, it's enough to make you jump off the streetcar and start walking. Happily, walking is one of the best ways to discover the historic districts of this modern metropolis, which, this year, is commemorating a crucial event in its past: The Battle of York, fought during the nearly three-yearlong War of 1812.

Fort York It was perhaps the worst day in Toronto's history. April 27, 1813: The Battle of York.

An event seared into the collective memory of a young Canada, it prompted a tit-for-tat that saw British troops burn the U.S. president's house in Washington the following year.

But on the day of the battle, British regulars, Canadian volunteers and First Nations warriors - severely out-manned and badly outgunned by attacking U.S. forces - fought a daylong battle to protect their homes. And lost.

Fort York, built to defend the town of York - as Toronto was then known - had been destroyed. The town was in flames.

Rampaging U.S. troops set fire to the Parliament buildings of Upper Canada (the early name for Ontario), as well as to the home of the lieutenant-governor. They ransacked, pillaged and plundered. "They managed to ravage York's public infrastructure quite handily," says Wayne Reeves, chief curator of museum services for the city of Toronto.

It's a fascinating story that still surprises Canadian visitors to Old Fort York, now a national historic site. So this year, which marks the bicentennial of the battle, walking tours in and around the rebuilt fort are telling the story, taking visitors to the very places in today's Toronto where the battle was fought.

"Because Fort York and the surrounding battlefield are so well preserved, they are a really tangible place to point and say, 'This happened right here,' " Reeves says. For Reeves, it's important for visitors to connect "Muddy Old York" with today's Toronto and contemporary Canada.

"If you care about how Canada came to be, you should be interested in the War of 1812, in places like Fort York and events like the Battle of York," Reeves says. "It's not just part of our city's story; it's part of our national story."

St. Lawrence Market A few kilometres straight east from Fort York along Front St. is the St. Lawrence Market District. More than housing a great food market, it is, says tour guide Bruce Bell, where Toronto really began. The town of York was founded just north of Front St. and a little to the east, in 1793. (This is where poor roads earned it that "Muddy" nickname.) In this district was the public market that was raided by American soldiers after the Battle of York.

Part performer, part historian and part foodie, Bell has the status of a local celebrity, which gets him behind closed doors and allows him to unlock the historical secrets of the St. Lawrence Market.

Even locals are surprised to find out that the façade of the South Market hides the sumptuous council chambers of Toronto's original city hall - as well as that era's jail. Toronto's beautifully preserved flatiron building (built in 1892, it's older than New York's) is across the street on Front.

Bell stresses that his tours aren't just about ancient history.

"I like to talk about Toronto's place in the world and how we went from basically a small out-of-theway British colonial outpost to become one the world's great cities in a short period of time."

Bell especially loves to show off the Renaissance Revival splendour of nearby St. Lawrence Hall - with its imperial amphitheatre and magnificent grand ballroom. It became renowned as the centre of Toronto's social, cultural and political life.

"My tours might start out as a history lesson in Toronto's past," Bell says, "but they end up being about much more than that."

The Distillery District Just a short walk southeast of the market is the Distillery District, another national historic site that's a mere stone's throw from the site of Upper Canada's original Parliament buildings, which were located at Front and Parliament Sts. These were the Parliament buildings the Americans burned down after the Battle of York. It's here that I meet John McTaggart, a tour guide who grew up in the city and who loves showing out-of-towners the highlights of his hometown.

As we walk the narrow streets of cobblestone, McTaggart explains that this whole area was once the precinct of the Gooderham and Worts Distillery. Established in the 1830s - around the time York became Toronto - it grew to become the largest distillery of the Victorian age. By the time of Confederation in 1867, it was supplying millions of gallons of whisky and spirits each year to the British Empire and beyond.

These days, the former complex of commerce has the largest and best-preserved collection of Victorian- era industrial architecture in North America. But these are not just empty shells or museum pieces. What was once a derelict industrial area has been reborn as Canada's largest pedestrian mall and public art space. Where abandoned warehouses once stood are vibrant art galleries and performance centres. Extinct distilleries and tank houses are now boutiques, cafés and diners.

It's become one of the best things about Toronto: a place where you don't have to drink whisky to lift your spirits.

IF YOU GO

FORT YORK TOURS

Fort York is Canada's largest collection of original War of 1812 buildings and an 1813 battle site. Open year-round, it offers regular daytime tours and special tours this fall: Oct. 18, 19, 25, 26 - Fort York After Dark: Lantern tours Tour the grounds at night and hear tales of the haunted lighthouse and the Battle of York.

This B&B is set in a peaceful corner of Toronto's Annex neighbourhood known as Seaton Village. The area is named after John Colborne, 1st Baron Seaton, who was lieutenantgovernor of Upper Canada from 1828 to 1836. The Annex was also once home the president of Gooderham and Worts Distillery. Suitedreamstoronto.com

Victoria's Mansion Inn and Guest House

This manor home was built in the late 1800s in the area now known as Church Street Village. The neighbourhood's history dates back to before the War of 1812 when Upper Canada's Lt.-Gov. John Graves Simcoe was giving away land to his cronies.

Soldiers re-enact a skirmish at Old Fort York in Toronto. The national historic site that is marking the bicentennial of the bloody Battle of York this year, is now surrounded by a freeway and a high-end condo district.

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